Spindle testing dynamometer



E. H. GRANBERRY SPINDLE TESTING DYNAMOMETER Sept. 2, 1952 Filed Feb. 8 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet l VI MR E R WT. G H R m E ATTORNEY Sept. 1952 E. H. GRANBERRY 2,608,858

SPINDLE TESTING DYNAMOMETER Filed Feb. 8, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 3 INVENTOR EDGAR H GRANBERRY W QMQW ATTORNEY Patented Sept. 2, 1952 2,608,853,.1 V SPIN-DLE TESTING oY AMo ETEa p 7 Edgar H. GranbrrmS-hawmut, Ala assignor to West Point -Manufacturing Company, Point, Ga". a corporation of. Alabama West Application February 8, 1950, Serial No'..143,055

This invention relates to' the measurementsof power consumption byirotatable members, and

particularly to means for measuring the.:pwer

input into cotton spinning; spindles, whereby spindles of various types may becompared from the viewpoint of power consumption, and the en.- tire power problem as related theretoimayibesur waved to isolate andevaluate :thewaricusiactors involved herein; Y 1.4. t .2

. r The aproblem of; ower; consumptionrpmcotton p n in ispillcile isrof considerablareconomic importance; ADDIIOXimateIX'ifif-EY rpercentrofithe otal power: used by am r lz oesaintotthe :spi'nnizig room wherein most;ofthismowerzisdost imfrice tion, asmall. proportionpnly goinginto-the useful work of spinning and winding thezyarn; Exten sive power, consumption investigationsagunderazace tual running cond-itions inrthe mill--iarezbothrtime consuming and expensive, and development-iota simple, versatile and accurate mechanism and method for supplementing such data by labora torytest haslong beemdesired. g

l. It isan ob'jject'of thep'resentinve'ntion,accord; inglygto provide ,anovel mechanismlcr measureg menu offp'oWjer input.into.ro'tatahlimembers. I

.Itjis a particular, objectormein eauonto prof vid'e means for determiningltheipower consump-.- tion .of cotton spinning .spin'dl'es. under. .a; variety. ofreadily controlled conditionsf A further object .ofthe invention is toprovide. means adapted. to measure power.- .input'into: rotata blemembersv with. great accuracy, the system. being inherentlyfiexible and adaptable in utiliz-a tion to permit isolationand investigation of individual factors contributing to total power consumption.

Another object is to provide simplezandginexpensive rmechanismfor measuring @OWerccdn-z sumpt on, .r ad rlyp rtableeandzrrequiring littlea cr -no. maintenance. i I

. Still another object is: to provide aedynamome. eter substantially treeoffriction-errom Furthenobiects-wilL be in papt; obviousanduins part pointed'outhereinafter? The invention: and the novsel featuresiithereon may best be made clear from the followingzdee. scription and the accompanying drawings;- in which:

Figure 1 is a generalplan-view of an exemplary embodiment of the invention; arranged to measure power input into a conventional cotton spin,- ning spindle; 1

- Figure. 2 is an elevational -view= taken=along=tlie line 2-2 of Figure};

Figure 3 is=a:-f;ront iele'vational' view-of the dyalong the line"'33 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a sectional plan view taken along the line 4-4 of Figure-3,,showing details of the mechanism, and

I reclaims. (ct-73mm) f2. v Figure-.5 is a sectional elevationaliviewytaken on the line 5--5 of Figure 3, showing'further details.

Referring to the drawings, in Figures =1 and 2 is 5 shown-a table member ID, preferably of :heavy cast iron construction, and rigidly mounted thereon theframe ll,v adapted to support in the usual manner a spindle under test, indicated gene erally as l2. .As shown, the spindle comprisesthe 0 conventional whorl l3 and bolster case l4, and

carriesla'bobbin I 5, in this case a full bobbin.

, Similarly mounted on table I 0 adjacent frame I l is a. vertical standard; fromwhich the arms [1,. l8 and I9 extendlaterally. If. desired, the

15. frame H, standard; l6 andother support =.ele-;

ments mounted on the table may berisolated therefrom by rubberpads (notshown). inserted between them and the table, in order toreduce vibration to a minimum. Betweenstandardarms g0. l8qandyl 9, a cradle is vertically disposed, .upon

2.6support none of the weight of the motor and:

namcmeter components. of .the. invention, taken...

; disposed; inadjacency to the graduated edge of which the motor is rigidly mounted. Upper. and-lower trunnions 22 and 23, coaxial. with motor 2 I, extend vertically from the cradle; and terminate at their outer endsin the reduced-por tions 24- and 25, jrespectively, which extend throughstandard arms l8 and |9 and'are enclosed by the anti-friction bearings 26mounted therein. As willpresently be apparent: standard arms l8 and 19 and their anti-frictionbearings cradle, but. function merely, to maintainlthein axial alignment and prevent lateral deviation thereof..

'-I he motor-cradle assembly is suspended. 3Y5 meansofa-torsion element 21' coaxial-therewith. rigidly fixed at its upper end to standard arm: 11,

andsupporting at its lower end the entire'weight oftheassembly. Element 21 may; .de sirably;be alength of piano'wire, of, for example,-. 035 inch 40 diameter. To determine accurately. the free; lengthiof the Wire torsion element and providea end-.gripsitherefor, each end thereofmay-gbesilverlsoldered into a brass tube-28; the efiectivea tweenethe innerendsof tubes 28. At the upper; end oilthfe torsion'element, a fiangedlugv 29 is-eng'aged fto thert ube 28 by means of a *set screw. 30.;

The lu'glfiange rests on the upper surface of arm- IT; asshown andis, securely retained in place by} suitable means, such, as clip 3l, welded orpivotr allyconnectedto the arm, .The lower tube is received in'the reduced portion 24 of trunnion-2 2, and-'retainedtherein as by setscrewez, asclearlyshown in: Figure 5;

u Te -conveniently indicate: torsional deflectionof wire 217,; a -.di'a1;. .33... preferably "graduated; in; .dQ-r grees, is provided and suitably fastenedetoe the a periphery of reduced portion ZAiibyaae-set.rscrew 34. abest. :shown: .in Figure 4,. a pointer 35 is amass-e of motor 2!, at the vertical level of spindle whorl i l3, and is engaged thereto in driving relationship by an endless fabric belt 39, preferably of very light weight. belt 39 and apply static load to the spindle, an

idler pulley 40 is rotatably mounted at the outer end of a pivot arm 4!, which is pivotally supported by post 42 mounted on the table, and engaged to the oppositely extending pivot arm 43. To simplify calculations as to the static belt load on the spindle, the idler pulley is disposed to effect parallelism between the belt portionson either side of the spindle whorl (as best shown in Figure l), and force is applied thereto by means of adead weight. Specifically, in the example a flexible cord M is fixed to the outer end of pivot arm 43, and conducted therefrom in a direction. substantially normal thereto over a stationary pulley 45 and thence downwardly to thedead weight 46, which depends from the lower end'of the cord. As shown, pulley 45 maybe rotatably supported by an arm 41 extending outwardly froina suitable post 48. r

Motor2l is preferably a series-wound universal motor, and power is conducted thereto through conductors 49 from a variable voltage transformer 50, by means of which the speed of motor 2i:-may be finely controlled. Obviously, other means to obtain variable speed may be employed, such as aaThymotrol unit. Conductors 49 desirably are widely looped, so as to offer substantially no. resistance to free rotation of the motororadle assembly. Power is conducted to the transformer 50 from any suitable source (not shown) by conductors 5!. To determine accuratelythe speed of the spindle when driven, 'a suitable mark 52 may be painted or otherwise placed thereon (Figure 2), and a stroboscope 53 of variable frequency suitably mounted on a platform54 may be employed therewith. In operation,it will be readily recognized, the speed of the driving motor may be controlled by means of the transformer, and the speed of the driven spindle may be checked by viewin the mark 52 in the lightof stroboscope 53, in the well known manner.

As illustrated in dotted lines in Figure 2, a constant temperature bath 55 may be disposed below'frame H to enclose or partially enclose the bolster case of the spindle under test, in order to eliminate variations in oiltemperature therein.

The invention is adapted to be utilized as follows. The pointer 35 being previouslyadjusted to coincide with zero position on the dial 33, a spindle I2 to be tested may be set up in frame H and connected to motor pulley 38 by belt 39. A dead weight 46 is selected and attached to flexible cord 44 to apply the desired force to idler pulley 40, and thereby give the desired tension to the belt and the desired static load to the spindle for the test. The dead weight required to produce a desired tension in the belt maybe read ily determined by force vectors. By. the arrangement previously described, wherein thebeltportions on both sides of the spindle whorl are disposed in parallelism, it will be evident that the static belt load on the spindle whorl is twice the tension in the belt.

If. desired, a constant temperature bath 55 may be positioned about the spindle bolster [4 to In order to suitably tension the 4 maintain the temperature of the bolster oil coilstant throughout the test. The frequency of stroboscope 53' having been adjusted to correspond to the desired spindle R. P. M., the motor 2i may be started and adjusted to proper speed by means of transformer 50, to give the desired spindle speed, which may be checked with the aid of mark 52 in the light of the stroboscope in the well known manner. The reaction torque on the driving motor will, of course, tend to rotate the motor, and the motor-cradle assembly will be rotated thereby, as indicated by dotted lines in Figure 4, torsionally deflecting the wire 21 by which they are suspended. After conditions stabilize, the deflection of the wire torsion element may be noted from the dial, which rotates with the lower end thereof, while the pointer remains stationary with standard I6. This deflection of the torsion element may be readily interpreted into the power output of the motor, which is equal to the power input into the spindle, plus belt and pulley losses. v

The dynamometer may be initially calibrated by first adjusting to zero as described above, and then wrapping a light cord around lower trunnion Not the cradle. The cord may then be carried over a pulley and known weights applied to it. Asthe weights are applied, the-resultant torsional deflections'are recorded, and the product of the torque arm and force employed give the applied torque. From these values, the torsional modulus of elasticity of the torsion element may be determined by employing the formula a] where is the angle of twist in radians, T is the torque in inch-pounds, L is the free length of wire in inches, and J isthe polar moment of inertia in inches to the fourth power, G' being the torsional modulus in pounds per square inch. Using the applied torque data previously obtained, then, and the physical dimensions of the torsion element (diameter and length), the torsional modulus may be readily calculated. The torsional modulus being known, the generalpowerequations of the apparatus may be calculated by employing the following formula 583.6L wherein it is the diameter of the torsion element in inches-L the length thereof in inches, and t is the torque per degree of twist in inch-pounds. It will be recognized that the method described for mounting the torsion element in the brass tubes 28 is well adapted-to simplify and render exact this calculation, the soldered joints effecting a free length between the tubes readily measured and utilized as the true operative length of the wire.v

The angle of torsional deflection 0 may ibe expressed by the formula v 583.6TL f be derived for all standard whorl diameters;

whereby the effect on power consumption of this factor "becomes immediately apparent. i

The power output. of the driving motor corre sponds to power input into the'test 'spindleg plus power losses due to motor pulleywinda'ge, belt and'idler pulley friction. The power'losses-due to motor pulley windage, belt and idler'pulley friction'may be determined, in order to isolate by-diff'e'rence the power input into the spindle, by-utilizing the belt to drive the'idler pulley" by means of the motoigand-noting the power output of-thezmotor toovercome theseloss factors. a This maybe done at a variety-of motor speeds, and

the loss at each speed, in terms'o'f degrees -torsional deflection, thereby determined. It is foundthat differences in beltload (attained by variably tensioning the idlerpulley) have very little effect.

on'these loss values, and maybe disregarded for most practical purposes" In further tests, the appropriate loss value so obtained may be subtracted from the total torsional deflection effe'ctedin the test, the difference representing the torsional deflection (and consequently power) corresponding to powerinput into the test spindle.

It will be evident that with the foregoing data established, numerous series of .testsmay be run to compare the characteristics of "various types of spindles from many viewpoints, and toascertainthe efiect of individualfactors on spindle power consumption. For example, the effect of belt loading on spindle power consumption may be readily ascertained by testing aspindle under constant conditions of R. P. M.,- bobbin size and weight, oil temperature, and so forth, and varying the belt tension over a desired range, observing from the torsional deflection of the Wire the resultant effect on power consumption. Similar series of tests may be repeated with spindles of other types, and the various types compared and rated with regard to variability in power consumption due to variations in belt loading.

Similarly, the effect of spindle oil viscosity on various spindles may be studied, merely by repeating a series of tests in which the only variable is the viscosity of the spindle oil. In like manner the effect of spindle oil temperature in various spindles may be ascertained.

Power curves for various spindles over a range of spindle speeds may be determined, and have been found to be particularly valuable in evaluating and rating spindles of different construction. Such curves, it will be apparent, may be ascertained by testing spindles in a series of tests wherein all conditions are maintained constant except spindle speed. Such series of tests may be repeated with standard bobbins, empty bobbins and full bobbins, in order to obtain further curves corresponding to these bobbin loadings. By running similar test series on various spindles, the

powen'consumption "of thecspindlesiinayib'e abou rately ascertained;in.atformzreadilylcomparediand evaluated; 5 V

- The. power' consumptioni duei 'to'thei' Weightlan'd Windage of a yarn package may be 'obtainedfby, merely subtracting. :power 'consumptionzsobtaizi'ed using :an empty bobbin from the. value obtainedusing a full bobbin, To determineth'ezpoweri con sumption; due solely to Lthe' weight of. a package;

bobbinszrli'aving identical: outside. dimension and suriace:rough-ness;;but varying; .infweig htibytani amount. correspondingiftoi the weight 1615 package;:nfay be employetl inxcompflativettes' It will .beievidentthat theaeiiectiiof; othenlfactors'; conditions andcombinations thereof maybe exhaustivelystudied. a

The apparatus of the presentinventiomis noti only extremely versatile in scope, as; indicated:

above, butzis also accurate t'o a high degree- 3y. the vertical mountingor the torsion elementg.

rigidlysupp'orted at its upper end, an'd by the co-= axial suspension of the driving motor from the lower end thereof, the mechanism issu b'stan tially freed-of frictionerror the motor beingre strained from free rotation only by the resistance of the torsion element: to torsional stress-,-- except for the negligible friction of the-anti-friction bearings operative to prevent -'la-teral deviation".- Thus, even small power values may be determined on the device with extremely high accuracy? A Spindle data obtained by the invention maybe readily combined and correlated with data ob-'' tained by actual mill operation,- whereby each may be ch'ecked'against the otherand a complete p'igc ture obtained.

The mechanism of the invention, if desired,

maybereadily applied to a working spindle on'the" spinning frame. Further, the mechanism isobvi ously'adaptable to measure thepower consump' tion of other rotatable members with'compara'ble accuracy.

It will thus be seen that there has b'een:pr'0'- vided by this invention astructure in which the various object hereinbefore set'forth, together with many practical advantages'are successfully? achieved. As various possible embodimentsimay. be'made orthe mechanical features of thejabove. invention, all without departing from the scope from and supported by said torsion element, a.

driving connection between said driving means and said rotatable member, and means for indicating the torsional deflection of said torsion element.

2. Means for measuring power input into a rotatable member, comprising a vertically disposed torsion element, rotary driving means depending coaxially from and supported by said torsion element, a driving connection between said driving means and said rotatable member, and means for indicating the torsional deflection of said torsion element.

3. Means for measuring power input into a rotatable member, comprisin a vertically disposed torsion element, said torsion element being fixedly mounted at its upper end, driving means disposed on the axis of said torsion element depending therefrom and supported thereby, means all;

for varying the rotational speed of said driving means, a driving connection between said driving means and said rotatable member, and means forindicating .the torsional deflection of said torsion element.

-4.Means for measuring power input into a rotatable member, comprising a vertically disposed torsion element; rotary driving means depending coaxially from and supported by said torsion element,v means. for maintaining axial alignment of said driving means, a driving connection between said driving means and said rotatable member, and means for indicating the torsional deflection of said torsion element.

'5. Means for measuring power input into a rotatable member, comprising a vertically disposed torsion element, rotary driving means disposedon the axis of saidtorsion element depending therefrom and supported thereby, means for maintaining axial alignment of said driving means, a belt driving connection between said driving means and said rotatable member, means foradjustably tensioning said driving connection, and means for indicating the torsional deflection of said torsion element,

6. Means for measuring power input into a rotatable member, comprising a vertically disposed torsion element, rotary driving means depending coaxially from and. supported by said torsion element, a driving connection between said driving means and said rotatable member, means for indicating the torsional deflection of said torsion element, and means-for accurately determining the rotational speed of said rotatable member.

7. Means for measuring power input into a spinning spindle, comprising a vertically disposed wire fixedly mounted at its upper end, a motor depending coaxially from and supported by saidv wire,a belt engaging said motor and said spindle in driving relationship, and means for indicating the torsional deflection of said wire.

8. Means for measuring power input into a spinning spindle, comprising a vertically disposed wire fixedly mounted at its upper end, a motor depending coaxially from and supported by said wire, means for maintaining axial alignment of said motor, means for varying the rotational speed of said motor,.a belt engaging said motor andsaid spindle in driving relationship, means for indicating the torsional deflection of said torsion element, and means for accurately determining the rotational speed of said spindle.

9. Means for measuring power input into a spinning spindle, comprising avertically, disposed torsion element, said torsion element being fixedly mounted at its upper end, a motor depending coaxially, from and supported by said torsion element, means for maintaining axial alignment of said motor, a belt engagingsaid motor and said spindle in driving relationship, an idler pulley operative on said belt to tension the belt and apply static-load to said spindle, dead weight means operative to maintain the pressure of said idler pulley on said belt, and means for indicating the torsional deflection of said torsion element.

10. Means for -measuring power input intora spinning spindle, comprising a vertically disposed wire fixedly'mounted at its upper end, a motor depending coaxially from and supported by said wire, means for maintaining axial alignment of said motor, means for varying the rotational speed of said motor, a belt engaging said motor and said spindle in driving relationship,v

EDGAR H. GRANBERRY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name 1,192,861 Carmichael et a1. Aug. 1, 1916 1,961,178 Thomas June 5, 1934 2,154,631 McNally Apr. 18, 1939 2,354,923 McNamee Aug. 1, 1944 2,511,178

Date

Roters June 13, 1950- 

